Derrick Rose will be reuniting with former head coach Tom Thibodeau as he returns to the New York Knicks. According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, the Detroit Pistons came to an agreement, on Sunday afternoon, to trade Rose to the Knicks in exchange for Dennis Smith Jr. and a 2021 second-round pick.
Rose had sat out the last few games for the Pistons and on Saturday night the news came out that he and the organization had decided that a trade was in their mutual best interests.
Dennis Smith Jr., the No. 9 pick of the 2017 draft, has appeared in just three games this season. In 2019-20, he made 34 appearances and averaged 5.5 points with a woeful 39.9 shooting percentage. He has greatly struggled this season for New York. So much so that he asked for a G League assignment to get minutes and reps. With the Pistons, he may not need such an assignment.
The Knicks, meanwhile, are a few games under .500, but that is much better than what anyone expected, and also has them in place to chase one of the last playoff spots in the Eastern Conference. Entering Sunday, they were in seventh place and only 1.5 games behind the fifth position. This deal is a clear signal that they’re desperate to snap their postseason drought, which dates back to 2013.
This trade seems like a clear win for the Detroit Pistons. They were nearing an important deadline for Rose. They had gotten him for a favourable price in the 2019 offseason, signing him to a two-year, $15 million contract, and the clock was running.
In 2011, a 22-year-old Derrick Rose was named the youngest MVP in league history after averaging 25.0 points and 7.7 assists for the 62-20 Chicago Bulls. Getting him on the move soon, was imperative, and the Pistons knew it. This deal with the Knicks for Dennis Smith Jr. and undetermined draft assets seems like a suitable deal.
